Stop, and Think
by HopelessFeathers
Summary: All Megan wants is to leave the McGowans but Aimee slows her down, asking her to think about it a bit more. With Megan's sudden disappearance, the boys realize what a mark Megan has left on them.
1. Chapter 1

**_so this story starts off where Megan has just left Finn's room after he implies for her to leave._**

Megan immediately ran to her room. She couldn't stop the tears from falling. No one in the house would probably even hear her since they were all huddled downstairs or sitting right next door. She hated herself now for making such a stupid mistake by staying. Why didn't she move with her parents? At least there she would have had someone to care for her, but here, in this reckless house, no one cared, not Evan, not Miller, not even Finn. Megan flipped through the contacts in her phone trying to think of someone to just talk to. Aimee's name was a close first. Unthinkingly, Megan hit the dial button.

"Hey Megan, what's up?" cheered Aimee.

"Aimee...," Megan said as her voice cracked.

Aimee could sense the fear in Megan's voice. "Are you okay?" she asked instinctively.

Megan shook her head as if Aimee was right next to her, watching her. "No," she replied, to weak to lie or strong enough to bear the pain. "I hate this place; I hate the McGowan's. I want to leave."

Aimee listened as her friend sobbed in pain and for the first time, she realized that she meant it. Even if the whole body of girls in the school, including herself envied Megan for that, but she could feel her hurt. "Do you want to come over to my house for a few?"

"Is... Is that okay with your parents?" Megan stuttered.

"They're not even here so they'll never know. They just left a few days ago to my grandma's, they'll probably be back in a month or so, so Hailey and I have the house to ourselves. You can spend the weekend with us and try to sort out your thoughts here."

"Aimee, I don't want to bother you."

"Megan, you're not bothering me, but if you choose to like move out to some motel or like even head back to your parents before sleeping over at my place and getting some peace, I will really hate you."

Megan thought for a second about what Aimee had just said. It did seem reasonable; maybe she should give more thought into it before being too impulsive. "Okay," Megan said finally deciding. "Um...would you mind getting me a ride?"

"Sure thing, when do you want me over?" Aimee exclaimed.

"I don't want anyone to know that I'm gone so, could you come around 2?" Megan asked once more hoping it wasn't too much to ask.

"Okay. I'll be there. See you at 2."

"Bye Aimee thanks again."

"No problem, anything to keep you here for a few more days," Aimee said one last time before hanging up.

..:.

Megan came down to the kitchen to find Regina and John in the island alone. _'The boys are probably still downstairs,'_ she thought. "Regina, John," she called softly to them not wanting to interrupt.

"Hey Megan, how are you today?" asked Regina.

"It was okay," she replied. "Can I talk to you guys about something?"

They eyed each other awkwardly. Megan didn't really ask for too much around the house, it was mostly the other way around. "Sure...," they both replied in unison.

"Can I uh... sleep over at Aimee's for a few days?" she finally asked.

John shot Regina a look that Megan couldn't understand. It must have been something you develop after years of marrying someone. You just had to look at them, and you knew what they had to say without them even peeping a word.

"Sure..." Regina said confusingly. "Did something happen that made you want to sleep over at a friend's house?"

Megan could feel the blood in her body boil as if she'd been seen right through. She could only hope that it wasn't obvious enough that they could see. What was worse then lying to someone's face was getting caught lying. "No," she answered quietly, letting her gaze fall to the ground.

**_so the next chapter will be up real soon. do you think that Megan would change her mind about staying? Sorry this one was really short but i want to keep the events for the next chapter together so I apologize for that. _**


	2. Chapter 2

_Thanks for all the wait everyone, here's what you've all been waiting for._

It didn't take long for Megan to grab all her belongings since she didn't really empty out her suitcase. Well, she couldn't really empty it out since the boys often came in and out of her room rummaging through all her stuff. It was easier to keep everything in a suitcase and just put a lock on it all. It was barely 7. She had a lot of time to waste before Aimee came over. Maybe she could go downstairs, sit with the McGowans for dinner and pretend that nothing had happened then just leave in the middle of the night soundlessly; it wasn't like they would even care if she left anyways. They wanted her out; that was their plan from the start, well guess what? She was just doing them a favor by choosing to leave instead of having them kick her out.

Megan got up slowly and dragged her heavy legs down the stairs to join the McGowans for dinner. She didn't want them to know what she had been up too and yet, the quieter the house grew, the more afraid she was of being caught. Megan nibbled on her steamed beans as she watched Evan from the corner of her eyes. He didn't seem to care, to be truthful, it was like the whole house didn't notice the heavy cloud that stood above her head, or maybe Mrs. McGowan was the only one to become aware of it since she caught her staring at her multiple times during the dinner. Megan didn't care anymore. If the boys didn't want her sticking around, she wasn't going to be around anymore anyways. _'Just a couple more hours,'_ she told herself. _'You can do this, just act like this for a couple more hours and then this whole nightmare will end. Just a few more hours.'_

..:.

As the night slowly crept in, the silence among the family still remained. It frighten Mrs. McGowan, her boys had never been this quiet, what could possibly be the cause of it? She knew her sons all too well and they weren't the type of people to open up to her automatically. She had to be the one to take initiative but oddly, even with all her curiosity, she wanted to wait a little.

..:.

Megan unhurriedly made her way out of the house, trying to pass each door quietly so that the others wouldn't be awaken by her and most of all, she wanted to take in her experience of this horrible place, and keep in tucked in her memory because this was her only experience of staying in a place for this long. There was no way that these memories were ever going to reoccur.

Amy came at the exact time that she had agreed to come. Pulling in slowly into the McGowans' driveway and turning off her headlights, she didn't want Megan to leave in a mess. Who knew that behind her nice personality stood a devious plan.

"Hey, thanks for coming," Megan thanked as her best friend arrived.

"No problem, it's what friends do Megan, well, what I do," she whispered.

"Thanks again though."

"Megan, sometimes you talk more than Hailey. Just get into the car."

..:.

Disappointment washed upon Megan as she watched the house grow farther and farther in the distance. There was a part of her that wanted to know if any of the boys would bide her goodbye or even ask her to stay, but this was better. At least she didn't have to put up with the ugly faces that snickered at her and those who wore the face as if they just saw someone puke. At least this way, she didn't have to listen to those hurried voices rushing her out of the hush. This way, she could leave soundlessly with some dignity.

..:.

"I'm home," Amy cried as she entered her house.

"Wel-," Hailey's welcome was cut short as her was filled with astonishment. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"She's staying over with us for a little while," Amy stepped in. "Her life at the McGowans is awful and I invited her to stay here for a while before deciding if she really wants to go back to her parents."

Hailey looked at Megan for a second; she could see the pain that she tried to hide. Megan had her head down as if Hailey had already uninvited her. "How bad is it?" was all Hailey said. She didn't want to seem like she cared for Megan but in their twisted friendship-soccer teammate relationship, she did.

Silence grew in the house, Megan didn't peep a word, instead just breaking into tears; the ones that she had been longing to let out. That was all it took, one phrase from someone she didn't like much, Hailey, one simple sentence was all that needed to be said to make her cry then and there.

Hailey silently rushed by Megan's side, taking her place on the other side of Amy and the sisters worked together towards one thing, other than soccer.

..:.

_**Your Review Replies From Last Chapter:**_

**Tkshipper:** Here's chapter 2 hahaha. Hope you liked it.

**BooBoo33**: The girls weekend is coming and so are the boys. Thanks for the review.

**Iluvmcgowanboys123:** I've updated. Sorry it took me so long, but here's chapter 2.

**Kerry:** Hope you enjoyed chapter 2.

**Esmeralda Diana Parker:** Here it is. Hahaha. The next chapter you've been waiting for. Thanks for the wait.

**Katelyn:** Thanks for the review. Hope you liked chapter 2.

**Spoilergrl881: **Thanks. I thought chapter 1 wouldn't be very appealing to the audience, but I guess I thought wrong.

**Keeperkerry:** Here's chapter 2. It wasn't from the boys point of view. But the next chapter might be. You'll have to wait and see. hahahaha. There's going to have to be something about the boys right? That's just insane if there's nothing about them in the next chapter. Thanks for the review.

..:.

_Thanks for reading everyone. The next chapters going to take a little while cause right now my time is tangled with summer daycamp kids. I should be able to start writing the next chapter in about a week or so, keep updated on my profile. Thanks again._


	3. Chapter 3

_A/n: Well, I think I owe all of you guys an apology for keeping you all waiting. My schedule has been so busy but with Christmas Break slowly creeping amongst us, I had a chance to finish this chapter. Hope you'll like it and please excuse me for any flaws in my writing as I haven't written in a while..._

.:.

**Megan's POV**

Megan awoke to the glowing rays of the sun and a rather wet pillow. That was the best sleep that she had had in years. No problems, no nightmares, just a mellow slumber. As much as she didn't want to get up, she knew that she wasn't going to stay in bed for the entire day due to an aching heart. No matter how much she wished that time could stop, she knew perfectly well that life doesn't change its patterns for anyone. In the halls, she came face to face with Hailey, Megan couldn't describe the look that Hailey gave her; it was just something she couldn't read. Thoughts bombarded Megan's mind, _'She thinks you're weak', 'You're pathetic', 'You know she's only doing this because you're her sister's friend'_.

"Don't ever let a guy hold you back," were the words that peeped out of Hailey's mouth.

"What?" Megan answered with a questioned look on her face.

"I remember the first big fight that Evan and I had, he told me to quit the soccer team so that we could spend more time together but I refused to and he said that if I didn't he'd break-up with me. The next thing I knew, I was running home crying and weighing out whether I was making a wrong decision by holding onto the sport that I loved the most over the my boyfriend. A couple hours after, I realized that a boyfriend is just a temporary thing, I'm dating him because he won my heart over but my passion, my hobby, that was what defined me and so, I decided that I wasn't going to give up on soccer even though I loved him. A few days later, he came and apologized to me, saying that he thought about it and asking me to give up soccer was practically telling him to give up what he loved. Don't let the guys get to you Megan. I know you're stronger than that."

As Megan watched Hailey turn her back and head into her bedroom, she was still left standing alone in the halls with her mouth hanging open, trying to take in the story that Hailey had just told her. Perhaps that's the thing about life, you can never know a person to the full extent, and certainly not see the vulnerable sides of such a strong opponent. It just reminded a lot of us that everyone has a past and that all it takes is just one moment to start showing them to someone else, for comfort, for laughter, for entertainment.

.:.

**Finn's Pov**

Most of the boys were already seated at the kitchen table crunching at their cereal, fighting for the last spoonful of jam or waiting anxiously at the coffee maker. It wasn't until Doug asked, "Hey, where's the B cup?" did any of us notice the absence of the soulful girl.

It was true, she had walked into my room and I had told her to leave but I didn't think that she would still be in her bed sleeping until midday...

"Hey Finn, what happened to your little girlfriend?" mocked Caleb.

I could feel all the eyes on the table swiftly turn their heads towards me as my cheeks grew beet red. "She...is...uh, probably...sleeping or something," I stuttered not letting my eyes off the flakes of cereal in my bowl.

"She's such a pig," complained Ian. "Of well, more eggs for us then."

I wondered what mom was thinking as I looked up and saw her small figure. Her back was turned to us and not once did she saw sign of curiosity as we sat at the table gossiping about Megan who would be down any minute now.

The room grew quiet almost instantaneously as we all wondered what could have been keeping Megan up. There was no doubt that her presence made us all uneasy, I mean we've been living our entire lives in a house of 8 guys and 1 girl, if that's what you would consider my mother but not really right? So I guess it was the youngness in Megan, the fact that she's only 17 makes us all a little weird. I swear I saw my brother's eyes sparkle when they first met Megan but that was probably before they found out that she would be staying over at our place. "Megan's not coming back," my mom spoke ever so lightly that if you munched your cereal during that time, you would have missed it.

I was the first one to speak of this bewilderment of course. "What do you mean?"

Still with her back towards us, she answered: "Check her room. She left this house for good." The tone in her voice was inevitable. It was as if she was on the edge of breaking down... As I shared questioned looks with my brothers, we rose from our seats in unison and headed up the countless flight of stairs in an orderly fashion. For the first time, it was as if all the McGowan boys had rewired our brains so that we would uncover this mystery in some sort of mannered way. The way we walked up the stairs from smallest to oldest, not peeping a single word or rushing past each other was so formal, it was scary.

One of the twins must have opened the door because by the time I got into the hall, the door to Megan's room was already opened.

There it was. Her room filled with her scent. The bed was neatly made with the curtains closed perfectly at the middle. The floor was left spotless. She was really gone.

"How could she just leave like that? She didn't even leave any service fees," remarked Caleb.

"Are you boys happy now?" asked my mom as she stood in the doorway. Her eyes were watery, there was no doubt that she had cried, for the absence of the daughter she never had.

Our eyes all averted to the floor as if guilt had consumed us all.

.:.

_**Your review replies from last chapter:**_

**Iluvmcgowanboys123:** Here's chapter 3. I hoped you enjoy it. Sorry that I kept you waiting.

**Esmeralda Diana Parker:** Love your little bit on the story. Hey, the boys definitely deserve a beating for treating Megan like that.

**Katiebear95:** Thanks haha. Hope you liked chapter 3 too!

**NCISlover96**: Sorry I kept you waiting for so long. Hope you liked it.

**Booboo33**: Hope this chapter satisfied an even softer side to Hailey as she tells her enemy a little about her past.

**TKShipper:** I agree with you. It's really nice to see the nice sides of Hailey, and hey, they're both dealing with the McGowan boys' right? So yeah, they should look out for each other :]

**Ace5492:** Here's chapter 3! Haha. Sorry to have not updated in so long.

**MusicAddict101:** I'm not going to end it here. Here's chapter 3, but sorry to bring the bad news, the story is nearing the end...one more chapter will help finish this story.

**Marissa:** Chapter 3 is finally up. Hope you didn't have to check in for too long.

.:.

_A/n: There's only going to one more chapter to finish this story. Hopefully I'll squeeze it in before the end of this break. Thanks for everyone for the messages and all the wonderful reviews: _


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/n:**_ Thanks for all the reviews everyone. I just felt like writing another chapter for this. This chapter might be a slight out of character for some of the boys so just keep that in mind...Enjoy.

The boys dispersed themselves throughout the house and around the yard. Somehow the disappearance of Megan had a strong affect on each of them. It got to them so immensely that they needed time away from each other. Just to reflect on her...

**Evan's POV**

I grabbed a seat in the living room as my brothers also began to fan out after the Megan-search-bedroom incident. It's odd how such a small little girl can have such a huge toil on all of us. I couldn't help but reflect back on it to...

'I didn't realize I had dropped my fork on the floor when Mom broke the news. I was one of the last ones to arrive up at her room too. I don't know man, what I can really say to the disappearance of her. Hailey DID hate her, so I guess that's kind of good on Hailey's part but I mean, having her around for these past weeks wasn't as bad as what I had thought. Yeah, I partied with girls, talked to girls, flirted with girls but living with one is a completely different story. When Megan was around, it made me think of Hailey a lot (no, I'm not cheating on Hailey); I just thought a lot about the future that we might have together since they ARE both girls. They're kind of alike as much as Hailey loves to deny it. Would it be a little too mushy to say that I'd like to have her back?'

..:.

**Doug's POV**

I sat on the front doorstep with my fists under my chin; ignoring the fact that grey clouds where now hovering over the sky.

'That girl ACTUALLY left. Wow. I used to hate her and the moment she came into the house, I wished she'd leave but now...now that she's not here...I'm not sure what to think anymore...I mean, okay yeah she helped me get out of trouble that time during school...don't really want to remember that day but I can't help where my thoughts drift. As irritating as I think she was, she ended up better than what I thought she'd be. Guess I finally understand what they say in English class when they mentioned: "Don't judge a book by its cover." Stupid girl, wish she'd get her stupid butt back here so that this house would go back to normal.

..:.

**Miller's POV**

I got down to the basement

And realized no one was there

Everyone was thinking about Megan

She was gone

Mom says she's gone

She was nice

She was Aimee's friend

I liked her

I wish she can come back

I want to talk to her again

She was nice to me

She made my family happy

She made me happy.

..:.

**Sean's POV**

I kind of expected that girl to be gone when mom told us about her disappearance. It didn't really bother me that much as it did with the others; heck, I didn't even bother going upstairs to look for her. I just grabbed a slice of toast and headed to the garage to fix my bike. I mean, she's cool, don't get me wrong. How can I not love a girl for digging bikes, you know what I mean? It was nice to have her around but hey, it's really not the end of the world of anything but I can see that it's taken a toll on my brothers. Guess what I really think what's going on in my brain is that it'd be nice to have her back, to cheer up the family and maybe afterwards, I can give her a few more pointers.

..:.

**Ian and Caleb's POV**

We went out onto the swing seat and sat for a really long time without talking to each other. Just sat there and thought about booger face. It was weird to have another girl in the house, because we didn't really know what to do...we were always around mom and stuff, but that's mom and this was a teenage girl. She was definitely pretty and our dumb brothers were looking at her with those eyes. At first she was really in our way but it was fun having a sister around. Is this how Sean and them used to treat her? Is she gonna come back? Our house is kind of quiet without her...

..:.

**Finn's POV**

I didn't believe mom when she announced Megan's departure; she wouldn't leave, but that didn't stop me from nearly trampling over my brothers and shoving everyone aside so I'd get there first; but of course, sneaky little Ian beat me to door. And surely, it was true. Even the disbeliefs were written off. I immediately ran to the shed; the one place I could be alone but surely, I didn't think twice about that choice because the first thing that I saw was her. Not her actual self but the painting of her that I couldn't get right. I slammed my fist on the walls. I just couldn't freaking get it right and now, there isn't even a chance for me to get it right. She's not even here anymore.

I needed to do something, there really was no use sitting around here and isolating myself. That wouldn't change the facts.

So, I swung open the shack door and set my plan in motion.

..:.

_**A/n:**_ Thanks for reading everyone. Again, no promises to when the next update is but spring break is about to end soon so I don't think I'll write much once school starts again. It'll be the most important 3 months of my life. So yeah, keep in touch through messaging or something and I'll keep you all updated with my profile.

**Review Replies from last chapter:**

**Iluvmcgowanboys123:** hope you didn't have to wait too long for this.

**Esmerald Diana Parker:** Hey, takes for the awesome review. I think I'd like to give the boys a piece of my mind too but after this chapter; I think they realize how important Megan is and the effects she had on the family.

**MusicAddict101:** Here was the update. Hope you enjoyed it :)

**Isaidlalala:** Yeah, sorry about the short chapters. I totally agree. The boys are dumb and don't know what's important to them until it's lost. Regina's watching her boys grow and Hailey is unpredictable.

**NCISlover96:** I think the boys got what they deserved. They've reflected on their mistake that's for sure.

**.WOLF:** Got the update here. Sorry for the wait.

**Iheartdesign34:** Hope you liked the boys' POV.

**Nightangel1220:** I think this chapter was a little ooc since I don't have the book with me...so yeah...hope it didn't turn out that bad...

**Backwoods Brainiak**: Thanks for the praise; I don't think I can write something even better than the book itself. Haha. Yep, I'm gonna stretch this story just a tad more, thanks for your review and sorry it took me this long to reply you back but this made my day. It always amazes me when I get reviews. Thanks for everything.

**TheWhiteEmpress:** Here you go. Hope the wait wasn't too long for you.

**Katiebear95:** Thanks for loving this story. I'm sorry for the late update and no worries, pressure helps a lot. It gives me the much needed motivation haha. Hope you enjoyed the read.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/n:** Hey everyone, wow. It's been a super duper long time...I'm going to be surprised if any of you guys are still going to be here and reading this. But anyways, for those of you who are, I hope you guys are doing really well :) Here's to you guys!

* * *

**Finn's POV**

I know it seems kind of dumb to claim that you're in love when you're not even out of high school yet but I can't help it. Some things in life just happened right? And it just takes that much to ignite the courage in you to chase after all that you've dreamt, well guess what? Megan is what I dream of.

Keep that to yourself okay? My brothers are seriously going to kill me if they ever find out about that. But right now, what I REALLY need to do is start gathering up all my paintings.

"Doug, have you seen my blue jay painting?" I ask walking to the front door.

I watched as he slowly raised his head but turned his face quickly to the corner so his eyes wouldn't meet mine. "No..." he said in a faint whisper.

You caught that right? I mean, it's Doug and he can actually whisper? What day is this? "You okay?" the sensitive side of me was coming out...

"Just get the hell out of my face," he shoved me aside as he quickly ran back into the house.

Okay, I don't blame him. If Megan was here, she'd lecture me that he's just going through puberty.

..:.

**Megan's POV**

There was really no point in me sulking around. I mean, I think it's pretty clear what the boys want from me. To get out of their face, yep, it was just that simple but my stupid little brain just couldn't wrap itself around it.

"You want breakfast?" Hailey asked me as I came down the stairs.

It was odd to have her this close to me when we're such rivals. Any other time, we'd be glad to chew on each other's necks but somehow, that all kind of subsided the night she saw me cry. "Sure," I answered. "Scrambled please."

Hailey only shook her head and rolled her eyes. Sorry Hailey, I'm that picky.

..:.

Since I didn't really have much to do for the weekend, I had agreed to go to Ben's party with Aimee and Hailey.

What else can I do to get my mind off of boys than a party with new boys right?

"Will...You...Please...Hurry...Up?" Aimee called upstairs to Hailey for the nth time.

Hailey had spent about 3 hours behind her closed door, doing who knows what while Aimee and I spent half the time pulling together an outfit. I chose a purple tank top with glass beads and navy blue skinny jeans topped with a pair of black stilettos.

"Hailey, seriously!" Aimee yelling once again, clearly she was getting annoyed.

"Will you SHUT UP? Do you think it doesn't take time to look this great?" Hailey said as she waved her hand down her body. I had to admit, she did look great. She wore a teal strapless dress that hung on the calves of her thighs; showcasing her gorgeous legs. You could see her magnificent curves and the exact edges and waves to her body. It suited her well.

"Wow," I finally let out. "Hot stuff," I teased her.

"Hey," Hailey said. "You're not so bad yourself, just don't let things get to your head and just remember to have an awesome time tonight."

I let out a grin to show my appreciation. Who would have imagined that under some conditions Hailey and I could be living under the same roof and be giving each other advice? I tried to push the thoughts of Finn out of my mind for the entire day now and Hailey just HAS to bring him up...great... "I will," I reassured her.

I saw a light hesitation in her eyes but she waved it off anyways.

"Now," Hailey started, motioning to Aimee, "We can leave."

..:.

When Aimee had plopped down on the seat next to me during breakfast and eagerly begged me to go with her to Ben's party; I agreed immediately but I didn't realize that I was setting myself up for a family barbeque. That was literally what the event was.

As Aimee parked her car three streets down, I thought of the amazing time I would have with fresh hot guys and drop-dead gorgeous girls but never in my entire life would I see little kids scrambling across the lawn and parents of all ages trying to keep an eye on their children while making small talk with the person they hardly knew.

Hailey must've realized my stare because she quickly said: "You didn't tell her what Ben's parties are like, did you Aimee?"

I heard Aimee's high pitched laughter. "Nope," she answered shaking her head.

My neck craned its way over to the right so my eyes could meet Aimee's as she saw mine roll. "Thanks for leaving that part out, loser."

"Hey, hey, hey don't go on hating when you don't know anything. The parents and the kids are here and inside the living room and practically the entire first floor but there ARE teenagers upstairs and THAT'S where you want to be," she supported.

Hailey nodded her head in confirmation.

I guess only time would tell right?

..:.

I guess that's how they explain first impressions because Aimee was right. Even when you're halfway up the flight of stairs, you know that's where all the troublemakers were from the sound of blasting music and tipsy figures.

"What did I tell you?" mocked Aimee. "What did I tell you?"

I could only roll my eyes at her. She knew she was right and made the comment just to rub it all over my face.

..:.

What turned out to be a party with new boys ended up with a party with new and mostly old boys. I have serious doubts in both Aimee and Hailey now; I mean really, not only do I bump into ONE of the McGowan boys but the entire family, seriously wow… so much for my weekend without them. Luckily though, I didn't catch a glimpse of the guy who broke my heart. He was probably in some room with a new girl already since he wanted me out so badly.

I'm not sure how people get over heartbreaks but I know that I'm not someone who handles it well. So I guess not seeing Finn when the massive family came to attack me by the door just before I was about to leave was a good thing.

"Megan," croaked Mr. McGowan.

I immediately spun around from the mention of my voice. When I saw that the entire clan was surrounding me, I wanted to just look each and every one of them in the eye and walk away again but that's not how I was raised, even if I wanted to walk out on them, I needed to acknowledge the people that had so kindly taken me under their wing.

I returned Mr. McGowan a smile and repeated the gesture towards Mrs. McGowan who was standing next to him.

Doug was the one who my eyes ended up glimpsing at as I attempted to make a follow-through into the party behind them. He wore the same look he had always had. The one that looked tough yet so shocked because I knew the true him but this time though, differently, he also wore the feeling of pain. "Megan," he managed to say when he caught me staring.

I hesitantly waited. For him to lash out on me, for him to be the Doug I had come to know but instead of throwing another tantrum he spoke one single phrase that made my entire idea seem stupid. "Come back home with us."

..:.

And I guess that's probably why I found myself unpacking at 12 in the morning that night. You just never knew what kind of effect people had on you because clearly, they could change. It was possible, I had seen it in Doug and everyone else too as they all volunteered to help me retrieve and unload my belongings from Aimee's house. I gave Aimee an apologetic smile as she waved me off back to the house but that wasn't before I said thanks to Hailey; really I actually thanked her because she deserved it and heck, I didn't deserve any of her kindness, but she had in fact given that to me when I needed it the most, in the times I never thought you would and for that I had to thank her because more than likely, by the time we ended up back at school on Monday, everything would return to the way it was before.

That very same night, I had managed to get a good sleep. Not like the ones I had at Aimee's house but it was actually one that I didn't want to wake up from; good sleep.

..:.

It was as if my body had an internal alarm of it's own because I woke up the same time I usually did at the McGowan house; like my body never truly believed I left. It was nice to be back here to be honest, I didn't know how the morning after would feel like but as I made my way into the kitchen and towards the familiar table of people, I knew that things hadn't changed so much after all; like the weekend runaway to Aimee's never happened at all.

The younger ones still yanked and pulled each other at the breakfast table while the older ones were already talking with their mouths full. There was familiar coffee smells in the air and the aroma of sizzling bacon…..mmmmm.

"Good morning Megan," Mrs. McGowan greeted me with a delightful smile.

I returned her an apologetic smile while the eyes at the table shifted over to me. For a second, I thought they'd return to their usual behaviour but instead, I came across a table full of smiles.

"They just glad you're back," Mrs. McGowan explained.

I nodded back to her, in understanding and went to grab my cup of coffee that Mr. McGowan had already poured me and my plate of breakfast.

It wasn't until I was seated that I realized something was missing from the table; not something but a certain someone as the chair to my right was left empty.

I let my eyes wander the room as I kept my head down to my breakfast trying to act discrete but of course, being the lovely mother in the house, Mrs. McGowan just knew my troubles.

"Where's Finn?" she asked to no one in particular. "Will someone go get him before all the bacon's gone?"

I instinctively pushed out my chair because that was my duty; to call Finn but I realized a second later about our last run-in and decided against it.

"I'll do it," Doug replied, stuffing a handful of waffles into his mouth.

Finally I allowed myself to breathe. It was not my duty, it never was assigned to me and the fact that the boys didn't call upon me to get Finn down was a huge relief.

I just grabbed a hold of the maple syrup bottle when Doug came running into the room and yelling: "What the hell is wrong with people and notes?"

All of our eyes widen as Doug finished his speech and all dashed out the door, pajamas and all.

..:.

_Note to readers: next upload will be final chapter :)_

* * *

_**Review Replies from Chapter 4, very very late replies:**_

_**bitten91:**_ how's everything been with you? updated yet? hahaha. well i'm finally updating 5 months after so have you done it yet? hope you're having an awesome summer btw :)

_**Ms Fantasy Freak Lolololololol:**_ hope this chapter was long enough...haha. the chapters i write aren't really that long but maybe i shall use your advice for future uploads. hope you're still enjoying the story though.

_**The-White-Empress:**_ Mrs. McGowan said she left just to scare the boys hahaha. A little fun and games to show the sensitive sides of her son. When i first read your review, i did immediately start writing but then of course, with all the overwhelming work i had at school and my busy busy summer, this took a lot longer than it should have. hope you're still sticking with me.

_**iluvmcgowanboys123:**_ Firstly i just want to say, thanks for putting up with me and my long due updates. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

_**Esmerelda Diana Parker:**_ Oh Finn's going to be Finn. That's all I can say about that but next chapter is going to be the last, so I hope you'll enjoy it. Ps. Always loving your animated reviews. They're such a joy to read :)

_**iheartdesign34:**_ Thanks for reading. I try to make my characters as realistic as possible but of course, the original story was already well written and life-like so all i had to do was add a little bit of me into it.

_**MusicAddict101:**_ Can't see what Finn does to get Megan back just yet haha...that will be revealed in the next chapter.

_**thegentlequeen:**_ Hope you didn't have to wait too long for this update.

_**Lindsay:**_ Thanks for the review. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	6. Chapter 6

_**A/n:**_ Wow, what the? Haha. Another upload in less than 5 days? What the heck?

* * *

I didn't know how long it took me to process the words that Doug had spoken but a certain thing was that I was the last one sitting at the table to run out the door. I blame my lack of knowledge on Finn's behavior but in my defense, I've never seen Finn in that state before.

"What the hell was he thinking?" were the first words that broke the silence in the van; obviously coming from Doug. I sighed, I had thought of the same thing too but of course, I didn't make the remark. I mean really I was left in shock when Doug came running into the room and shouting, "what the hell is wrong with people and notes? Finn's on the freaking 1:00 flight to Korea because he's after Megan" his eyes narrowed in on me while the others still sat in shock.

"That would be in 2 hours," said Sean.

Suddenly our eyes shifted to the clock above us and someone spirited to the car first, perhaps Mr. McGowan or something but the rest of us followed shortly after.

It was pretty quiet after that, partly because the boys were thinking of ways they could make me suffer for putting their brother in such a daze; Evan and Sean took their own cars.

Mrs. McGowan was probably imagining how foolish she's raised her son and as for me, I just sat in the middle with my arm propped up on the arm rest; making a fist to rest my chin on it. I was thinking of a lot of things actually. Well of course they were all related to Finn. I thought of what we had since I've come here and my self-realization of falling in love with him but mostly I was thinking about everything that's happen in the past few days; my stupid idea to 'run away' meeting Doug and the family at a party and them wanting me back, me worrying about Finn and all the thoughts that must've gone through his head before he finally decided on booking a flight to Korea.

I never believed in superstitions but as I looked up in front of me, I saw the time 11:11 and I closed my eyes for just a second, hoping I would be able to get it right. It's kind of ironic but I believed in words like the words fate and destiny but certainly not wishes. There's just something about life that we control; yeah sure we can't control the actions and decisions of other people but we always have control of ourselves, to make our lives right; whatever that meant. So I sat there and hoped that for once, life would assist me a little in keeping back the one person I knew I wouldn't be able to live without.

..:.

Even right before Mr. McGowan stopped the car; the boys were already pulling off their seatbelts and pushing each other out of the car. Mrs. McGowan herself was already inside the airport, the effect that family had on you was amazing.

I did my part of course also trying to get out of the vehicle as fast as I could because I wanted to be a part of the search, the family but more importantly I didn't think I could lose Finn of for that matter, be responsible for making him pack his bags.

I felt like an ant once the doors of the airport opened and I saw the McGowan's all scattered everywhere looking for the one missing part and for a second, I envied their family. I was an only child and them; well their family was so big that there would always be a side for you to take. You were never alone. There would always be people there to care for you. My eyes darted wildly trying to spot the familiar figure and instinctively, my eyes darted up, towards the large board with the departure times that hung meters above me. I scanned it quickly trying to spot the word 'Korea' but no luck and it was if I was certain I was wrong, I tried again and there, right there huddled smack dab in the middle was 'Korea 1:00 gate 34'. My head automatically went left 'gate 16, ate 17' then right "gate 18, gate 19' and I let my feet take me in the direction I needed to go. For a soccer player, distance running was never an issue for me but here. It was like a battle against time and luck and even life itself. Like my team was trailing by just a goal in the championship round and it was all dependent on me since the ball was now in my possession. The run there was more difficult than a goal of course because once something is lost in life, it's hard to find it again and especially with love, and you've lost it whether you let it go willingly or because you waited too long to see it, only time will tell how long the second one will take to come back or even if we are ever prepared to move on from the previous one.

-Gate 27-

Everything seemed so close. A couple times I saw people shooting their heads my way, probably wondering what is wrong with this girl dressed in her pajamas trying to sneak past them without knocking down their luggage or even if they should chase after a running thief.

-Gate 30-

I'm getting breathless….for the reasons unknown. All I can think about is my wish; my one wish, in hope that I'm not too late as if I'm chasing after the last bus, the one that won't ever return.

-Gate 32-

I'm looking ahead, trying to spot him. I see Gate 34, it seems like it's within an arms reach. There's only a scarce crowd standing around the gate. No, it's not too late. I give it my all, whatever that was left in the energy of my legs to get to my final destination, my goal.

-Gate 34-

The first thing I do is slow down into a fast-paced walk. My eyes run wild again, knowing that I'm still in a fight against time. Old man, old man, old women, family, family, young girl, another family; that was it. No more. There was no more. In disbelief I rush towards the counter. "?" I say in one breathe.

The lady suddenly stopped what she was doing on the computer and focused in on me as if I was crazy. I didn't blame her; love did make you that way. "Could you repeat that again?" she asked nicely, trying to calm me down.

I took this moment to catch my breath, pausing in-between each word to inhale another breath. "Where…are….the…other…passengers…boarding…this…flight?"

"They're—" She didn't get to finish because a voice broke her off.

"Megan!" it called.

Swiftly I turned my head around and in the distance, amongst a crowd of people, I saw him. Only him and I hurried towards him, flinging my arms over his neck and pulling him into a hug. I missed him. A lot. Those books always tell you what it's like to miss a person but they forget to tell you how a million things wash over you when you finally get a chance to see them. "You didn't board the plane," I smiled, pulling us apart from the hug for just a moment.

"It got delayed," he chuckled.

Gosh, I missed his laughter. "Why would you book a flight to Korea though?" I asked as my eyes and hands went up to his hair.

He waited and while he paused, I looked back down towards his eyes. When he knew he had my attention, he began his little speech. "Well, people say they do crazy things for love and as for me, I thought I was in love. So I dug around the shed and around the house for some paintings that I had kept and never thought about selling and surprisingly people were paying me much more than what I even thought they were worth. Heck, I thought I had to find more jobs to earn the money but one day of sitting at the flea market and my paintings were gone just like that and I had enough money to buy a plane ticket to go find you. It pained me to even think that you'd even be away from me for more than a few minutes Megan, I would have done anything. And well I was sitting over there in the corner trying to figure out the words I was going to say to you when I saw you running over here and towards the counter so I called you and the rest, well, you know the rest. When did you even come back?"

It was my turn to let out a laugh. "I never left."

His eyebrows furrowed into a question look, "But I was certain that my mom said that you left.."

"For the weekend to Aimee's house because I couldn't stand you guys anymore."

He softly giggled as he ran a hand through his hair. "Oh man….wow…..I guess I am really in love with you then huh?"

I replied with a grin. "I still can't believe that you would actually board a plane to find me."

"Like I said, people do crazy things when their in love. I love you Megan."

"I love you too Finn," I whispered.

And like any other novel, as if on cue, we stood there in the middle of the crowd, our bodies so close together as I clung onto his neck while he wrapped his arms around my waist and our lips met, kissing each other like there was no tomorrow; as if today was really our last.

* * *

_**A/n:**_ Wow. So that's the end of the chapter guys. Just have to say thank you to you all for reading this. I mean, this has been a really long journey (literally) and I'm surprised that some of you still stuck with me right till the end. For those who wanna follow me later with more updates and things, I can be found at .com  
I'm actually in progress of writing a book...yet to find a publisher but you know, I've got to actually write the story first and have people want to read it right?  
Well anyways, feel free to message me sometime here or on the various links i've posted on my profile.  
Once again thank you to all of you. Here are your final review replies and to those who review this chapter, i'll personally message you guys back and for those of you who stopped giving me your attention, thanks for giving me a chance nonetheless. You guys are amazing and you're one of the reasons why I keep writing. Thank you all :)

* * *

_**The final review replies, from last chapter:**_

_**MusicAddict101:**_ Just checked my pages of reviews and saw that you commented on about every single chapter. Wow, I'm so glad you did. You're awesome, I don't think that this review would be enough to thank you for coming back after every chapter. I know I kind of stretched a few things. So thanks for not rushing me to finish. Are you as surprised as i was on how fast this update was? Keep in touch okay? Hopefully, I'll be seeing you around here :)

_**Ms Fantasy Freak Lolololololol:**_ Although my journey with you was quite short, nonetheless, I still love your reviews. I'm alive haha. I posted my author's blog link there too. Don't worry, you'll see me around. Hopefully I'm going to use that blog more often and keep you updated with my works. Thanks for the reviews and I'm definitely aiming for longer chapters now because of your encouragement. Stay connected :)

_**iluvmcgowanboys123:**_ Hey, how are you doing? It's been so long, goodness. I still remember you since the beginning of all this, probably because your username has the name of the boys a lot of people has come to love. Anyways, thank you for all your reviews. I know I'm a bit of a tough person to put up with since i don't update as often as i used to but thanks for messaging me from time to time rushing me to update. This story would have gone no where without you and you're amazing support. Message me :)

_**iheartdesign34:**_ To the friend that came halfway through all this, thanks for your time to review my works. I love your enthusiastic reviews and how you can make me smile. Thanks for telling me to update and wanting to read what i've got in store. Keep in touch :)

_**Lindsay:**_ You anonymous reviewer. I love you account or no account. You should make an connect so we could message :)

..:.

_**To the reviewers whose been here but couldn't make it on time:**_

_**Esmerelda Diana Parker:**_ Hey, other reviewer who I can't forget. You've been here for me the entire journey and you've seen how slow my updates are. So unfortunate that you couldn't read my last chapter update in time for this grand finale, but nonetheless, I haven't forgotten about you. Thank you so much for all those animated reviews you leave me. Yeah, I'll admit it. sometimes your reviews are so awesome that I get lost in them too. Gonna wish you a ton. Would love to know what you're up to :)

_**The-White-Empress/TheWhiteEmpress:**_ Thanks for your reviews. I haven't forgotten about you. Love how I keep you on your toes every chapter. Not sure if you're still following the story or have to go all the way back to the beginning to understand it all again but thank you so much for even reading this. It means a lot to me. Keep in touch :)

_**Moon Shines Over the Cowshed:**_ Hope you're still here or will some day return to this story and finish reading it. Anyways, thanks for all your support. Keep me updated :)

_**NCISlover96:**_ Wondering if you're still with me, anyways, thanks for your views. Let's stay connected :)

_**TKShipper:**_ Still reading this fanfiction? Thank you if you are and if you're not, i don't blame you. You were my first reviewer on this story so thank you for that. You don't know how excited I was to get that first review. Anyways, message me :)

_**BooBoo33:**_ To my second reviewer for this story, are you still keeping up with my story? Well if you're not, no feelings hurt because I did take rather long to finish this. Thanks for all the support. Keep in touch :)

_**kerry/keeperkerry:**_ Thanks for all the update comments. Message me :)

_**Honorable mentions:**_

_**thegentlequeen**_

_**bitten91 **_

_**Backwoods Brainiak **_

_**nightangel1220 **_

_**.WOLF **_

_**isaidlalala**_

**Marissa**

**_Ace5492_**


End file.
